FEATURED ARTICLES ABOUT YOUNG REPUBLICANS - PAGE 3

Fighting the toughest campaign of his political career from a hospital bed, Tracy Stafford, D-Wilton Manors, managed to defeat his Republican challenger and is ready to complete his fifth and final term as a state legislator. Stafford, 50, who has represented District 92 since 1990, underwent a partial amputation of his left leg in the final stretch of the campaign against political newcomer George LeMieux, 29, a lawyer from Fort Lauderdale. In what became one of Broward County's fiercest races, the eight-year incumbent and former mayor of Wilton Manors beat LeMieux by a comfortable margin, despite an aggressive, grass-roots campaign by the former head of Broward's Young Republicans.

If they could enter a voting booth Nov. 5, they would. Their ideology has already been formed. Whether they're Democrat or Republican, some political activists start as early as high school. "We don't want to just like the Republican Party," says Chris Sajedra, a founder of the Young Republicans at St. Thomas Aquinas High. "We want to become a part of it." To that end, the extent of political activism varies. At the very least, they pass out leaflets and answer phones. At the most, they recruit others to their party and try to influence those old enough to vote.

College is the perfect time for students to become involved in politics. It is a time to learn about the aspects of the two major political parties. It appears many Stetson University students are from a Republican household, whereas many of the professors make it quite clear that they are Democratic liberals and display it proudly. Most, if not all, college campuses have both Young Democrats and Young Republican groups for students to become involved in. With sponsored events, the two groups attempt to gain larger and new support from students by alerting the students of world issues that affect them.

EVENT HONORS YOUNG REPUBLICAN Todd Goberville of Parkland has been named Young Republican of the Year. Goberville was honored at a dinner last month in Dania Beach attended by U.S. Rep. Katherine Harris, R-Sarasota; state Sen. Jeff Atwater, R-North Palm Beach; state Rep. Adam Hasner, R-Delray Beach; and U.S. Rep. E. Clay Shaw, R-Fort Lauderdale. Goberville, 30, is the past president of the Lighthouse Point Republican Club and is currently serving as the vice chairman of the Florida Federation of Young Republicans.

South Florida's Republicans have picked their delegates to the Republican National Convention and, not surprisingly, they were dominated by supporters of U.S. Sen. Bob Dole. Tom Sliney Jr., Palm Beach County GOP chairman, said the choices represented "a good cross-section of the party." The delegates were picked in meetings March 15 and 16 by GOP officials from each county in a congressional district. "The Dole campaign said who it wanted as delegates," Keller said. "We didn't have to adhere to its wishes, but we tried to."

All-America update ... Frank McKinney, who made early reservations to fly to Charlotte, N.C., for the All-America City Award Banquet, said he won`t be going north, since Delray Beach didn`t win. "I was so shocked that we didn`t get it," said McKinney, who bought his ticket months in advance of the June banquet. "I was lucky that I had a refundable ticket." Delray Beach and Boca Raton were knocked out of the competition recently when National Civic League officials selected 30 cities as finalists.

Rethinking Republicanism . . . When Republicans get together, it`s usually segregated. There are the Teen-age Republicans, the Young Republicans, the Republican Men`s Club and the Republican Women`s Club. Boca Raton`s Eric Johnson is trying to loosen things up -- and shake things up. He and some other leaders of the Boca Raton Young Republicans have deserted, forming the Republican Forum of Boca Raton. "This is breaking new ground," Johnson said just before the group`s inaugural last week at Addison`s Restuarant.

POLITICS Biden says McCain and Bush are afraid to negotiate After a day of campaigning in South Florida, Barack Obama's running mate, U.S. Sen. Joe Biden, spoke to Sun Sentinel reporter Mark Hollis about some of the concerns on the minds of Palm Beach County voters. During the interview, Biden predicted the Democrats will handily win swing states like Florida, and he explained the Obama-Biden stance on key issues involving foreign policy and Israel. When asked to explain why some area voters remain concerned about Obama's willingness to meet with Palestinian leaders, Biden attacked President Bush and McCain, and said Republicans are "afraid to negotiate."

To all those kind-hearted folks who want to protect my feelings as an African-American from the insult that Sen. Harry Reid allegedly has heaped upon me: Thanks, but no thanks. The Senate majority leader has been accused, mostly by Republicans and other conservatives, of racism for committing what they apparently see as the high crime of speaking candidly about voters' racial prejudices. Reid is quoted in Game Change, a new book by John Heilemann and Mark Halperin, as saying during the 2008 presidential campaign that Democratic candidate Barack Obama had good odds of being elected the first black president because he was "light-skinned" and did not speak with a "Negro dialect, unless he wanted to have one."